Texaco Gives $10,000 to Firemen Fund

Texaco Oil Co. officials last week thanked Los Angeles city firefighters for battling the blaze at the oil company's Wilmington refinery on Dec. 26 and donated $10,000 to the Widows' and Orphans' Fund of the Firefighters' Relief Fund.

Individuals often give money to the relief fund in thanks to firefighters or paramedics who have given them assistance, "but this is the first time I know that a company has done something like this," Reed said,

Praise for Firefighters

The oil company praised the way firefighters worked with Texaco fire crews to keep the blaze from spreading beyond the coking unit at the Pacific Coast Highway refinery.

According to Reed, the fire broke out in a vacuum pump that failed in the coking unit. It started about 3:30 p.m. Dec. 26 and burned until 7 p.m. the next day.

A damage estimate is not available because oil company officials have not yet determined how much crude and refined products were in the unit when the fire broke out.